RUSSIAN BILLIONAIRE UNVEILS 300FT HIGH, £250M YACHT

This mega yacht was built for Russian billionaire Andrey Igorevich Melnichenko and is simply named after him. The 300ft yacht with 8 floors and an underground observation room is taking its test voyage in Kiel, northern Germany.

The vessel is an upgrade to the Russian billionaire's current multi-million pound 'Motor Yacht A,' that set him back £190million.

The yacht was designed by Frenchman Philippe Starck and built by German Naval Yards, Nobiskrug.

The epic vessel boasts a staggering eight decks and its keel incorporates one of the largest single pieces of curved glass ever made at 193 square feet and weighs a whopping 1.8 tons. It dwarfs other famous super-yachts like The Maltese Falcon, which is 298ft and weighs 1,367 tons.

Cruise speed of the ship is 18mph, with a top speed of 24mph. The hull is made of steel, with a teak-finish deck. The yacht will have a high-tech digital control system operated using a touch sensitive sheet of black glass in the bridge.This will allow the crew to raise and lower the sails and even drop the anchor with a brush of their fingers.

The 43-year-old was born in Belarus and is married to a former Serbian model. He was named as the 97th wealthiest person on the planet by Forbes, and the ninth richest in Russia.

Mr Melnichenko, whose net worth is estimated at £6billion ($9billion), founded the fertilizer producer EuroChem, the coal producer Suek, the power generator SGK, and the pipe exporter TMK along with Sergei Popov.